German broadcaster accuses Elon Musk, Tommy Robinson of inciting Belfast riot

German public broadcaster ZDF accused Elon Musk and British right-wing activist Tommy Robinson of inciting anti-immigrant violence in Belfast following a brutal stabbing attack that triggered days of riots across Northern Ireland.

A 30-year-old Sudanese man, Hadi Alodid, was charged with attempted murder, possession of a knife and making threats to kill. He entered Northern Ireland in 2023, applied for asylum and was granted refugee status the same year, with leave to remain until 2028, a Home Office spokesperson confirmed to Newsweek. The victim — a man in his 40s — was hospitalized with serious injuries to his eyes, face and back. 

The charges prompted protests that flared into violence in Belfast and several other areas, with masked men setting fire to homes they believed to house immigrants, torching a bus and hurling rocks at police. 

ZDF’s flagship evening programme “Today Live” devoted much of a Tuesday broadcast to the role of social media in fueling the unrest. Presenter Christina v. Ungern-Sternberg said a “British right-wing extremist and tech billionaire Elon Musk” had called for rioters to hunt down migrants — a claim the broadcaster did not support with direct evidence.

The posts in question show Mr. Robinson urging followers to join demonstrations at locations listed across Britain and Northern Ireland, with instructions to remain “Peaceful. Respectful. Together.” Mr. Musk shared that post on X, writing to his 240 million followers: “Only by protesting REPEATEDLY and LOUDLY will there be any change!!” 

Researchers from the nonprofit Center for Countering Digital Hate reported that posts about Belfast from Mr. Musk, Mr. Robinson and Restore Britain party leader Rupert Lowe collectively amassed more than 115 million views, with Mr. Musk accounting for 55% of the total. The watchdog said it identified more than 3,900 comments in the replies advocating violence against immigrants, with two-thirds appearing in replies to Mr. Robinson’s posts. 

Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill condemned “the Elon Musks of this world,” saying they were “sitting right comfy in their homes, orchestrating hate and tension.” Labour Party Chair Anna Turley called Mr. Musk’s interventions “appalling,” saying anyone exploiting the situation to advance a political agenda was “doing damage.” ZDF also featured Ciaran O’Connor of the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, who said Mr. Musk had used X to amplify local immigration stories to an international audience and to spread addresses of properties linked to asylum seekers.

That concern had roots well before this week’s riots. The Accountability Project Northern Ireland, a volunteer group monitoring anti-immigration activity online, warned police that a so-called hitlist of addresses had been circulating among far-right groups since August 2025 and was sent to the Police Service of Northern Ireland in January 2026. The addresses were among the locations targeted during this week’s disorder. 

The ZDF broadcast drew scrutiny of its own. The network previously issued a retraction after its Washington correspondent falsely claimed that Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk had called for homosexuals to be “stoned to death” — a claim ZDF later acknowledged misrepresented Kirk quoting a Bible passage.

The Belfast unrest echoes the 2024 riots triggered by the fatal stabbing of three children at a dance workshop, during which the attacker was falsely identified on social media as a Muslim asylum seeker before police confirmed he was a British citizen born in Wales.